Thermal and quantum fluctuations in extended Kitaev-Yao-Lee spin-orbital model
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866917516183339008 |
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| author | Cen, Jiefu Kee, Hae-Young |
| author_facet | Cen, Jiefu Kee, Hae-Young |
| contents | Building upon the spin-1/2 Kitaev model on a honeycomb lattice, the Yao-Lee spin-orbital model provides exactly solvable quantum spin liquids with potentially better stability against perturbations due to the additional degree of freedom. Recently, the microscopic mechanism underlying the Yao-Lee interaction in honeycomb materials has been uncovered, leading to an extended Kitaev-Yao-Lee spin-orbital model when the celebrated Kugel-Khomskii interaction is included. Numerical studies of this model have identified various disordered phases, including a broad region of the nematic phase that is reminiscent of a spin-orbital liquid. Here, we investigate the origin and stability of this nematic phase via thermal and quantum fluctuations using classical Monte Carlo simulations and a generalized spin wave theory appropriate for the spin-orbital model. We demonstrate that the additional spin-orbital degree of freedom gives rise to strong thermal and quantum fluctuations in spin-orbital models, providing insight into the emergence of disordered phases. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_08710 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Thermal and quantum fluctuations in extended Kitaev-Yao-Lee spin-orbital model Cen, Jiefu Kee, Hae-Young Strongly Correlated Electrons Building upon the spin-1/2 Kitaev model on a honeycomb lattice, the Yao-Lee spin-orbital model provides exactly solvable quantum spin liquids with potentially better stability against perturbations due to the additional degree of freedom. Recently, the microscopic mechanism underlying the Yao-Lee interaction in honeycomb materials has been uncovered, leading to an extended Kitaev-Yao-Lee spin-orbital model when the celebrated Kugel-Khomskii interaction is included. Numerical studies of this model have identified various disordered phases, including a broad region of the nematic phase that is reminiscent of a spin-orbital liquid. Here, we investigate the origin and stability of this nematic phase via thermal and quantum fluctuations using classical Monte Carlo simulations and a generalized spin wave theory appropriate for the spin-orbital model. We demonstrate that the additional spin-orbital degree of freedom gives rise to strong thermal and quantum fluctuations in spin-orbital models, providing insight into the emergence of disordered phases. |
| title | Thermal and quantum fluctuations in extended Kitaev-Yao-Lee spin-orbital model |
| topic | Strongly Correlated Electrons |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.08710 |